“Beneath the rust and grime which dulls the shine of our weathered hearts, joy patiently waits to be rediscovered” 
― John Mark Green

For my photography, image titles often come quite easily. As I venture into the world of acrylic painting, I’m finding that that’s not the case. Perhaps it’s the extended creation process, where I am spending a longer period of time creating the art itself?

Photos come naturally to me. I see a scene before me that is interesting, compose the image, set lighting, exposure and depth of field, and voila! I have a photo that I am generally pleased with.

The same holds true with painting. There is a lot of thought that goes into the process that I had not considered until I started painting a few short years ago and I have not been doing much lately. But now, I have taken a course and understand that the creative process is very similar and all the elements that make a good photo also hold true for painting.

I’ve always enjoyed impressionist paintings and have striven for that same feel with my photos. Now, I’m trying to merge the two, simply to stay creative, especially in winter months where outdoor activity can be quite limited. So, I’ve pushed myself a bit, trying to add some texture to my work by doing an entire painting with a palette knife, way out of my comfort zone, but so very satisfying.

Once again, I remind myself this is my photo blog, but I think that painting is helping me in my creative process for photography and this is, after all, a photo of a painting.